F1 champion Villeneuve turns to electric racing: 'Some see me as a traitor'

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Photos:Va-va-voom Villeneuve

Jacques Villeneuve established himself as an international star by winning the 1997 Formula One world title ...

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Photos:Va-va-voom Villeneuve

... and the charismatic Canadian is still chasing new thrills and electric dreams in motorsport nearly 20 years later.

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Photos:Va-va-voom Villeneuve

At the age of 44, the Canadian has a new challenge -- driving in the Formula E World Championship for electric cars.

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Photos:Va-va-voom Villeneuve

Villeneuve, who drives for the Venturi team, is the first F1 world champion to race in Formula E.

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Photos:Va-va-voom Villeneuve

Jacques was born to race. His father is Ferrari driver Gilles Villeneuve, seen here putting his son at the controls of his car during a family visit to the F1 paddock in the 1979 season.

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Photos:Va-va-voom Villeneuve

Gilles Villeneuve was one of the most popular racers of his generation. Although he won just six of his 67 races, his style and swagger made him a favorite with motorsport fans. He died following an accident at the 1982 Belgian Grand Prix.

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Photos:Va-va-voom Villeneuve

A teenage Jacques picked up his father's mantle and began racing. His first major success came on U.S. soil when, in 1995, he became the first Canadian to claim the Indy 500 after recovering from a mid-race penalty at the Brickyard.

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Photos:Va-va-voom Villeneuve

Villeneuve went on to win the IndyCar title -- a triumph which propelled him into F1. He signed a two-year deal with Williams and won his first race in the fourth round of the 1996 season in Germany.

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Photos:Va-va-voom Villeneuve

October 26, 1997: It's a date to remember for Villeneuve as he takes the checkered flag at the European Grand Prix in Jerez, Spain. His third-place finish was enough to win the drivers' championship with Williams in only his second season in F1.

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Photos:Va-va-voom Villeneuve

During his 11 years in F1, Villeneuve won 11 races, recorded 23 podiums and claimed 13 pole positions. "F1 has to be out there, extreme, unattainable, stupid, crazy," he now says of the sport.

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Photos:Va-va-voom Villeneuve

After quitting F1 in 2006, Villeneuve (seen here driving the No.22 car) joined NASCAR but the speed he honed in F1 often ended in crashes on the ovals. "I've never retired. I've always raced. I've always been a competitor at heart," he says.

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Story highlights

Villeneuve is first F1 champ to race in Formula E

"I've never retired, I've always raced," he says

Drives for Leonardo di Caprio's Venturi team

Says F1 is "a lot less appealing to the public"

(CNN)There is a maxim in motorsport that when drivers retire they will do just about anything to rediscover its thrills, from speedboat racing to, well, organic farming.

One of Formula One's most flamboyant title winners, Jacques Villeneuve, is no different.

"You should never compare an electrical car with a push-to-the-limit fuel engine car, that's not the point."

It is a decade since Villeneuve climbed out of an F1 cockpit for good, sensationally leaving BMW Sauber with five races still to run in the 2006 season.

The son of Ferrari favorite Gilles Villeneuve -- who was killed in a crash before he won the F1 title many believe he was destined to claim -- he has always operated with an appealing single-mindedness.

In 1995, at the age of 24, he blazed a trail on U.S. circuits as the first Canadian to win the Indy 500 and the youngest to claim the IndyCar championship.

Next, he dazzled F1 by wrestling the title from Michael Schumacher in only his second season, winning fans with his feisty style -- both on track and in the fashion stakes -- and glamorous girlfriends, including Australian pop star Dannii Minogue.

After his dramatic F1 exit, Villeneuve turned to NASCAR where he gained a reputation for being fast and loose, and now in 2016 he brings the Villeneuve je ne sais quoi to Formula E.

"I've never retired. I've always raced. I've always been a competitor at heart," Villeneuve explains with a purposeful edge to his voice.

"I still play ice hockey, so I need that kind of sport, I need to be competing."

Villeneuve the thrill seeker was turned on to Formula E by the inaugural championship, won last June by another son of an F1 star, Nelson Piquet Jr.

"I was watching the races and feeling a bit annoyed about not being part of it," Villeneuve recalls. "I was on the edge of my seat saying, 'That would be fun, I wish I was there,' and that was how it started.

"There was a quick communication with Venturi and I got the call saying they wanted me to do a test at the Paul Ricard circuit in France.

"I jumped in the car and did a 30-lap test in (teammate) Stephane Sarrazin's car, which was the first time I used someone else's race seat.

"I borrowed a race suit from Patrick Lemarie, our test driver at (former F1 team) BAR. It was moldy and smelly and very snug, but that made the whole test fun and it went well. Two days later the contract was signed."

"It's not just about going fast through a corner -- that's one thing. It's also pushing the limit and finding the solutions to go faster whatever the championship, whatever the car. Finding a tenth, the next tenth and so on is something I've always found exciting.

"I really love racing downtown, in between the walls where there's no margin for error, which is the opposite of what has happened in F1. Formula E is a new challenge and it's complex."

As well as exploring new challenges for his own pleasure, Villeneuve is also super-keen to set an example to his four sons.

He was just 11 when his father was involved in a fatal accident in qualifying for the 1982 Belgian Grand Prix at Zolder.

"F1 tries to be everything, and that's wrong," the 1997 world champion argues. "It tries to be an endurance car, it's some form of hybrid ... and hybrid technology weighs around 100 kilos and that's four seconds a lap of weight. It's not F1, it's not extreme, it doesn't make sense.

"F1 has to be out there, extreme, unattainable, stupid, crazy -- that's what it's always been. It's a laboratory where the sky's the limit.

"There are a lot of things that are making F1 a lot less appealing to the public. A bunch of things like (overtaking aid) DRS. We don't have those things in Formula E."

Villeneuve concludes that F1 has to "go back to its roots" -- and while the top tier of motorsport conjures with that conundrum, one of its most famous champions is looking to the future.

"People are getting excited about Formula E," he says. "And the only way is up."